Fans and front-office personnel are saving the date: June 29 is the day LeBron James can opt out of his contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
James returned to Northeast Ohio in July 2014, leaving the Miami Heat four years after bolting Cleveland in an excruciating public departure aired by ESPN and titled “The Decision.”
“I haven’t thought about next season at all,” James said.
The level of fear that James might take his talents elsewhere is minimized this time by the passionate letter in Sports Illustrated that trumpeted a triumphant comeback to Cleveland last summer.
But James does hold significant leverage.
“My family is happy. That makes my job a lot easier,” James said. “For the fans, I go out and try to just leave it all on the floor and hope it’s enough.”
Can the Cavaliers keep LeBron happy?
“He has become a great leader of this team,” coach David Blatt said. “He should be proud of what he did this year. I thought he had one of the best seasons of his career, and I’m glad that I could be one of the guys that helped him do that.”
Already the Cavaliers are said to be asking for his input on what the roster should look like, and James had pull in those transactions last year, when the team brought in allies such as Mike Miller and James Jones and chased Ray Allen. James also led the personal outreach to Kevin Love, who was acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves for a pair of No. 1 overall draft picks (Anthony Bennett, Andrew Wiggins).
His historic Finals performance, averaging 35-10-8, came in a losing effort but point guard Kyrie Irving and possibly Love — who claims he wants to return to Cleveland despite public speculation that he and James aren’t on the same page — surely would have made the Cavaliers more competitive in the best-of-seven defeat to the Golden State Warriors.
Love’s best play might be to follow the leader.
James’ ultimate goal is to have the freedom to maximize his value. The NBA collective bargaining agreement could change radically after next season and new, strong currents of revenue from fresh TV and digital agreements with Turner and ESPN might even lift the salary cap structure by 50 percent or higher.
James and Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant could be free agents with $40 million or greater annual salaries when the dust settles. Love certainly is aware of the next generation CBA changing the meaning, or eliminating the idea, of a “max contract.”
This time, the Ohio region James calls home might not be fretting another painful foray into free agency, but the option remains LeBron’s. And with the sea change in contracts coming, this same stay-or-go Decision will be an annual option for James.